The parish's Mosquito Abatement District reported Wednesday (Aug. 9) the state Department of Health and Hospitals confirmed the first human case in northern Covington. Last year there was a single human case of West Nile, which is carried by mosquitos, in the parish.

Details on the severity of this year's case were not provided in a news release from the abatement district.

The district has found the presence of West Nile in 34 of 3,981 samplings of mosquitos in the parish, the release said. Most of the positive samplings were collected in the Mandeville, Covington and Madisonville areas, it said.

Abatement district workers have been treating the entire parish with ground and aerial spraying equipment, but focusing on the Mandeville, Covington and Madisonville areas, the district said.

The agency urges St. Tammany residents to take precautions in mosquito-prone areas. It recommends that people wear long-sleeve shirts and pants when outside and apply mosquito repellents, such as Deet or Picaridin.

The doors and screens of homes should be kept closed as much as possible, the news release said.